How can I explain the Holocaust to my daughter?

I believe that children, especially bright children, should always be told the truth, assuming they are old enough to understand the truth, painful or not. We can not and should not shield them from life.

The best thing I can think to do to explain the Holocaust to your daughter is for both of you to watch the movie Schindler's List together. It's a great movie from the point of view of having a very positive moral lesson, while revealing the atrocities of what happened during that time.

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I must respectfully disagree with the previous poster saying that you need to tell her this will not happen again.

While it might be true that as a middle class American, she will most likely never face such atrocities in her life, such atrocities occur daily in modern war torn places in the world. And sadly, it could happen again even in America under the right conditions (I'm thinking WWIII type situations).

Actually, the reason to educate our children about these types of events is to help ensure that they do not happen again. The words still hold true... "Those that do not know history are doomed to repeat it".

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Schindler's List is NOT a PG rated movie. I would suggest that before showing it to a 9yo girl, you at least read some of what you can expect to see. ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schindlers_List ). While it is true that there is profanity and nudity in this movie, it is NOT gratuitous in any sense of the word. As explained in the wiki artical, it has been shown on network television, in it's entirety, with virtually nothing censored because it's such a serious movie.

Hi,

I agree that this is a tough one, I have an 8 year old daughter that is thrilled with the History Channel and is exposed to a lot of history that I wish she didn't have to learn until later in life.

I would suggest reading the Diary of Anne Frank together. Maybe talk about what it must be like for Anne during that time. It is important that she learns the lessons of history.

Although the Nazi's were horrible in many ways, as attempted genocide is proof positive of that. It might be beneficial to teach her how it came about. First with a country so far into poverty that garden tools were worth more than money. How a seemingly average man came into power and changed the country into a world power that took on several nations at once.

Perhaps continue with how power can change a person, make them a different person. You could easily pick on a few celebrities to talk about the changes during their rise to stardom.

How that power came about subtle and so many people were taken unaware until it was too late to speak up. These are life lessons that hopefully will never be in our future, but unfortunately as humans it probably will again. Rwanda, Dar fur and Kosovo seem to come to mind.

Knowledge is always a good thing, even for a 9 year old. It's better to talk about it with you, than to get just a little information from a teacher.

Laura

I am also of Jewish descent....so I can understand your sensitivity to this topic. That said, perhaps you need to read some of the books on the list before she does to make sure you feel they are appropriate, and then have your own little "book club." You can talk to your daughter about how that event in history had negative parts, and parts in which future generations could learn something positive. Talk and find stories about heroes, both Jewish and not Jewish. Point out people during that time who laid their own lives on the line to help their friends against what they knew was wrong.

Above all, your daughter will take her cues from you and your behavior. If you fall apart while talking about this, it will make it harder for her to grasp and cope with, as she will see how difficult it is for you. YES, you want her to be sensitive and compassionate, but you don't want her to be incapable of handling life and the bad things that get thrown your way. So, show her how to put this in proper perspective by how you deal with it.

Good Luck.

I think you should tell her that Hitler was a very mean and hateful man and very few people in the world were brave enough to stand up to him before it was too late. Many innocent people lost their lives because of just one groups hatred.

Reassure her that even though it is terrible, we can learn from tragedies like that so that they don't happen again.

You can tell her about the resistance forces and all the people that tried to help people escape and that did take a stand and made a difference.

A good book for her to read at that age is "Number the Stars". It is clear what is going on, but there is stuff about hope and resistance - much less upsetting and less dark then The Diary of Anne Frank or Night or something.

While I am glad that you are educating your daughter on this, I have few ideas.

I was around 10 or 11 when I read "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas". It is about a young boy named Bruno who talks with Shmuel, a young. Jewish boy through the gate of the concentration camp.

It is written by a 9 y.o's point of view, so while it is mostly easy to understand you will still need to discuss certain events while reading this book.

Although, do you really want to read a book to learn something for a reading list? Maybe this is a book on your reading list? If so, start with that.

It all depends on your personal preference. I am not implying that you are shielding her, but she will find out eventually. Telling your daughter at her age now would not have a detrimental effect. Having others feed her opinions would be the travesty. I would recommend to tell her the motives of the Holocaust by Hitler, as to show how opinions differ. But in all respect, she is only 9, so do not be offended if my view do not concur with yours. I feel people should be informed. Perhaps you could give her a children's history book of the holocaust for her to read, as to establish her own information of the Holocaust. It is entirely up to you.

Currently there is a study being done by two professors about the time before the concentration camps. The motto then as "one bullet/one Jew" and the

Jews were buried in mass graves. Some of them weren't dead yet. Perhaps you can tackle this from a current news point of view.

Being Jewish and having a mother that was in England at the time Hitler tried to invade, we were never kept in the dark about Mom's part in the war effort. It was part of our heritage and she was proud of her efforts. You can also try approaching the subject from the point of view of people who were everyday hero's fighting the good fight.

it is ironic that your username is Eva Braun. yet, assuming you're no longer professional-Nazi or something stupid like that, and purely like her call... you need to be uncomplicated with the youngster. I advise, in line with danger you do no longer ought to describe precisely how the Jews (and particularly some people) have been dealt with - you do no longer choose for to offer the youngster nightmares, yet say it the way it enhance into: Hitler enhance right into a German Dictator, who persecuted Jews and people he did no longer like, and did no longer type as Aryan in international conflict 2. He, and the SS military have been an occasion of ways the human race can succumb to violent and prejudice techniques of treating different people from concern or purely, brainwashing. it is significant to rigidity how incorrect Hitler enhance into and how poor the Holocaust enhance into. a toddler ought to by no ability think of it is suited, and that's significant they remember what occurred. Lest we forget -

I would be straight with her. Tell her exactly what happened I suggest the Diary of Anne Frank.

I think you should explain what happened but don't forget to reassure her that that will never happen again.

She's old enough to hear this stuff...they hear worse stuff from other kids in school and on tv.

Good luck tho